Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Notes toward the establishment of a new blog

There are many things I've thought about as regards the pursuit of a purely autonomous career. I've made little films and thought about making bigger ones; I've re-mastered the guitar, recorded, and figured on making a living as a musician; I've spent a decade in the university system figuring I might eventually become a professor of something, but probably either Philosophy, English, or Art History.

The saga of areas I want to "break in to" continues: along with Italian Renaissance architecture, which I've been studying off and on for over a year, I'm now poking my nose into geometry, and the physics of music.

In all of these "fields," while it is true that they intrigue me in a theoretical way, I can't say I have any interest in them on a practical level. For examples: I really don't want to start playing gigs; nor do I want to be an architect, design new buildings; nor do I want to get anywhere near that Edifice of Bullshit which is Modern Academia.

The one area of confidence I have -- that which exceeds anything else I'm capable of doing, relatively speaking -- is writing. I don't remember a time when I didn't have a knack for language. Nor have I ever met anyone who was a better writer than I am. I'm sure there are better writers out there, but I've never met any of them. I have read many of them, but they're all dead now.

But here, alas, is the rub: I have no passion for writing! So what am I doing right now: I'm communicating thoughts, by means of writing. What most people call Great Writers are, more properly speaking, literary artists: they make beautiful objects -- just as plastic artists do -- but with pen, paper, and poem or paragraph. I would call this writing for writing's sake (ars gratia artis). And these type writers, true writers -- those who have both the natural talent and passion -- do not do what I want to do.

However, I seem to only be able to do what I want to do by means of writing. For what I want to do most of all is to study, to master, and to communicate my findings. The only way I know of to do this (besides talking) is to write. This activity is not writing for writing's sake, it is not art. This is more akin to philosophical reflection. What I am talking about is writing for the sake of something else. E.g., writing about an idea, writing about a building, writing about a film, writing about an author or book, writing about music theory. All I really want in life is to understand (and, on occasion, to get into "a reasonable amount of trouble").

What I've been thinking of, in terms of a new blog, consists of -- rather than most blogs one sees, which deal with one predominant "subject" -- interdisciplinarity. I would have one blog, but with separate sections; e.g., there would be a section on Philosophy, a section on Architecture, a section on Music, a section on books and authors that I read, a section on films perhaps. In the music section, I would discuss not only music theory, but also have recordings of my concrete experimentation on guitar with new theoretical ideas (which would stream, but could also be available for people to download for a small price).

But with all of this, I see still something much bigger going on. I believe that all of these things are connected. I see, e.g., music and architecture not merely as two separate arts, but as two kindsof manifestation of deeper ontological significance. So, perhaps, what I am working toward is a great game of connect-the-dots. Looking for such "substrates" might, in fact, form the content of the section on philosophy.

No comments:

Post a Comment

About Me

An obscurantist who takes pleasure in holding the unpopular view, dynamiter of the Train of Progress, and vehement defender of Dead White Men.
Also a guitarist: listen to demos at ReverbNation.com/JohnnieOrson